No Fear Here–Fast Summer Fun in Connecticut

Kids start lining up in May at Lake Compounce in Bristol to try out the coasters and classic rides at America’s oldest continuously operated amusement park. The Phobia ride adds New England’s first triple-launch coaster to the park, known for decades as the home of Boulder Dash—the “world’s #1 wooden coaster.” The summer tradition includes another superlative: Connecticut’s largest water park, Crocodile Cove. 

On the banks of Lake Quassapaug in Middlebury, Quassy Amusement Park & Waterpark features plenty of ways to get drenched. Splash Away Bay and the Wooden Warrior roller coaster add speed to the equation, or go old school with bumper cars, paddle boats and midway games. 

Gear up and hook onto zip lines around the state. At the Adventure Park at The Discovery Museum in Bridgeport, navigate treetop trails and bridges connected by 44 zip lines. If the platforms and obstacles don’t take your breath away, the surrounding woods will. At its sister park, the Adventure Park at Storrs, choose from nine aerial trails, 28 zip lines and more than 100 bridges. Night climbing and zipping adds an extreme element, if dangling four stories up isn’t extreme enough. Other zip adventures can be found at TreeTrails Adventures in Mystic.

Sonny's Place in Somers offers so many family indoor and outdoor activities, along with a variety of restaurants on site. Activities include mini golf, bumper boats, climbing walls, soaring zip rides, go karts, laser tag, and more.

A walk in the woods at The Dinosaur Place at Nature’s Art Village in Montville leads to encounters with 40 life-size dinosaur replicas throughout the park. This unplugged adventure is perfect for smaller kids and includes New England’s largest splash pad.

All the action at Brownstone Adventure Sports Park in Portland centers on a historic brownstone quarry where most of the activities end with a splash. On the banks, visitors climb a 70-foot cliff and zip back down for a water landing. Some of the 11 zip lines have dry landings, but where’s the fun in that?